Captain (O-3)
Captain (Capt) is the third Marine Corps commissioned officer rank, pay grade O-3. Its insignia is two silver bars side by side, joined at each end.
Easily confused with
How to read it
Captain follows first lieutenant (O-2) and is the most senior company grade officer; Major (O-4) (O-4) above it is the first field grade rank. The uniform regulations describe the insignia as two smooth silver bars attached at each end by a holding bar.
Also searched as: Capt, marine captain.
Ranks and insignia as the Marine Corps’ own orders and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
A Marine captain or a Navy captain?
The same title is two different ranks. A Marine captain is O-3. A Navy captain is O-6 and wears a silver eagle, the insignia of a Marine Colonel (O-6); the Navy’s O-3 is the lieutenant, who wears the same two silver bars as a Marine captain.
More marine Corps ranks
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Sources
- Marine Corps Ranks, marines.mil, Ranks, United States Marine Corps, Officer
- Marine Corps Uniform Regulations (MCO 1020.34H), MCO 1020.34H, 1 May 2018, Commandant of the Marine Corps, para 4005.2.h, p. 1-99
- Officer Knowledge (Officer Development School), Officer Training Command Newport, ODS Knowledge Book, Naval Service Training Command, U.S. Navy, Navy and Marine Corps Officer Rank Structure
- U.S. Military Rank Insignia, Resources: U.S. Military Rank Insignia (enlisted and officer insignia by paygrade), U.S. Department of Defense (defense.gov), Officer insignia, O-3 and O-6
Last reviewed September 29, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research